Ruined hands

[lalilala]

My hands are a disgrace, no matter how much i scrub them. I do use gloves most of the time, but there is always that weed that needs pulling or some crop to be cut! Has anyone out there got any tips on how to restore my hands.

[grannyjanny]

I got seaweed liguid on my hands. I asked the chap in the lotty shop if he knew how I could get it off. He didn't know but said he puts swarfega on his before he starts gardening.

[vicki.m]

This might sound mad but, have you tried washing your hair? I'm not sure whether it's shampoo or the act of washing hair but thats the only way I ever get clean hands and nails.

[antipodes]

try mixing up honey and rolled oats and scrub your hands with that. Then at night smother your hands in a really thick cream like nivea or lanolin or vaseline and sleep with gloves on (Yep, choose a cool day!), those little white gloves like lab assistants use when handling photos.

[Pesky Wabbit]

I use swafega after the lottie, if I use it before it just rubs off.

Also a soak in the bath with a good book helps.

[Chattinglil]

try mixing up honey and rolled oats and scrub your hands with that. Then at night smother your hands in a really thick cream like nivea or lanolin or vaseline and sleep with gloves on (Yep, choose a cool day!), those little white gloves like lab assistants use when handling photos.

You could also try a couple of tablespoons of sugar - wetted with olive oil.  The sugar scrubs everything off and exfoliates and the oil makes them lovely and soft

[cornykev]

Didn't someone on here make their own soap for gardening and other types of cleansing problems.        

[manicscousers]

Didn't someone on here make their own soap for gardening and other types of cleansing problems.        

It was Trixiebelle, Kev..miss her 

[Buster54]

A bit of baking for 8hrs sorts mine out

[Sholls]

My hands are a disgrace, no matter how much i scrub them. I do use gloves most of the time, but there is always that weed that needs pulling or some crop to be cut! Has anyone out there got any tips on how to restore my hands.

When you say "disgrace" what do you mean? Just dirt? For example, I always wear gloves, but seem to be developing thickened/discoloured skin around my cuticles and fingertips... I'm having to up my moisturisation regime & exfoliate like a mad woman, otherwise I would never be able to shake a client's hand. 

[gwynnethmary]

I went to Sainsbury's on the way home from the lottie- I did feel very conscious of my grubby paws!  I normally use a wet wipe kept in the shed for the purpose of a quick tidy up, but forgot today.  Then I came home and cooked beetroot!

[Kendy]

I usually find that after extensive use of swarfega and soap, nothing brings the last  of the muck off like a white towel !   

[Jeannine]

Making pastry does it for me XX Jeannine

[chriscross1966]

Making pastry does it for me XX Jeannine

Congratulations on putting me off pies.... almost unheard of.....

[Jeannine]

You wouldn't know if I didn't tell you.XX Jeannine

[lalilala]

Well, thank goodness I am not alone! Thanks for al the tips.

[Emagggie]

Just one more, lalilala, if you run your fingernails over a bar of soap so it gets under the nails, or have a good old squirt of barrier cream and rub it around the cuticles and make sure there's plenty under your nails before you put your gardening gloves on it helps immensely. A scrub with bleach sounds drastic, but obviously it works and you can do a major moisturize after.
Trixiebells soap was great stuff, shame she's not about now.

[lewic]

I get very dry/rough skin from gardening, and the best stuff I've tried is Flexitol heel balm / nail balm. Way better than any regular hand cream. I sometimes use a white nail pencil under my nails if they get too dirty (when I can be bothered!)

[Vinlander]

I hate wearing gloves so the skin on my fingers gets very thick, then there are tiny cracks and the dirt gets in so deep that soap and nailbrush can't get to it all.

Fortunately it doesn't get so deep that fine sandpaper can't reach it long before it finds tender skin...

Pumice is kinder and seems to talc the new surface too.

[lavenderlux]

I've found that using a 'foot scrub' product is good for removing ingrained dirt from gardening from my hands followed by using a foot cream on them, seems to be more 'deep reaching' than ordinaty hand creams